Dubai Chocolate Truffles
Savory and sweet chocolate with a distinctive crunch
Ingredients
Pistachio Butter/Paste *
- 2 cups raw pistachios (whole, shelled)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
Kataifi *
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 cups kataifi
Chocolate
- 2 cups dark chocolate chips
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup salted pistachios, chopped
Instructions
Pistachio Butter Paste
- Place raw pistachios on a large cookie sheet. Roast in a 325 degree oven for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool for 10 minutes.
- Placed roasted pistachios in a food processor and process until nuts form a cream. (This process takes some time. Crumbs will form, then dough and eventually cream. If food processor overheats, let cool off and then resume)
- Once the nuts have turned to butter, add oil and salt.
Kataifi
- Melt 3 tbs of butter in large saute pan. Stir in kataifi and saute until golden brown. (If using frozen/raw kataifi, break the threads into small (1 inch) pieces and saute until golden. This will take 5-10 minutes. If using the already toasted kataifi, sauté for 2-3 minutes.) Let kataifi cool for 5 minutes.
Assemble
- Mix 1 cup of pistachio cream with cooled kataifi in a large bowl. Chill for 10-15 minutes.
- Roll/scoop mixture into balls and place on waxed paper lined cookie sheet. Chill again.
- While balls are chilling, melt chocolate chips and butter in a double boiler. Remove from heat once melted.
- Dip chilled balls in chocolate and place on wax paper lined tray. Sprinkle with chopped pistachios.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Pistachio butter/paste can be purchased, or made from scratch as described above. If purchased, be sure to buy a thick paste in order to form into balls.
- Kataifi is phyllo dough that is shredded into threads. It can be purchased frozen/raw at specialty stores, such as Jungle Jim's. Alternatively, it can be purchased shelf stable--already toasted and broken into pieces. The shelf stable is easier to use, but both types will work fine.